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This week we've seen the most promising developments yet towards de-escalation in Palestine, with international dialogue leading to a cease-fire, exchanges of hostages, and plans to establish a new governing body in the Gaza Strip.

Yet the long term trauma created by conflict often perpetuates instability creating a cycle of violence and escalation. With no plan materialising for ending Israeli occupation of the West Bank nor for pursuing justice for the crimes committed in this conflict, huge questions hang over the future of Palestine and Israel.

For this week’s Get Action!, Wednesday Wire Producer Manny spoke with Rick Williment, Chair of the Public Issues Committee of Psychotherapists Aotearoa New Zealand about his open letter for Mental Health Professionals calling on government action for Palestine.

If you'd like to sign this petition, you can find it here:

Towards the end of August, secondary school outdoor education teachers were told that the course would be removed from the Education Ministry's general subject list as part of the government’s proposed replacement of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA).

As a result of being excluded from the list of general subjects, outdoor education, which provides direct training and pathways for students looking to enter conservation, environmental science and outdoor tourism careers, would be included in the list of vocational subjects, meaning that the course curriculum would be designed by the Industry Skills Boards instead of the Ministry of Education, stripping schools of the flexibility in designing the curriculum and removing pathways to higher education for students.

For this week’s Get Action! Wednesday Wire host Oto spoke with Fiona McDonald from Education Outdoors New Zealand to discuss a petition of hers calling on the ministry of education to keep outdoor education in the list of secondary school general subjects.

If you’d like to sign this petition, you can find it here:

With Israel’s war on Gaza now reaching its 655th day, bringing the number of casualties in the strip to almost 60,000 Palestinians, city councils, both in Aotearoa New Zealand and around the world, have been adopting resolutions officially calling for a ceasefire and divesting from Israeli companies and other enterprises involved in weapons manufacturing.

For this week’s Get Action! Oto spoke to Katrina Mitchell-Kouttab, a member of the Manawatu-based human rights group Thyme for Action, about a petition of hers calling on the Palmerston North City Council to adopt a ceasefire motion and ethical investment policy.

If you’d like to sign this petition, you can find it here:

Currently, 19 out of 38 OECD countries use incineration as a form of waste management.

With the process leading to a range of negative impacts, such as air pollution, Co2 emissions and respiratory illnesses, Aotearoa has luckily remained incinerator free.

However, calls have been made by some activists to strengthen New Zealand’s legislation to ensure that incineration facilities are not opened up in Aotearoa.

For this week’s Get Action! Oto spoke to Sue Coutts from Zero Waste Network New Zealand to discuss a petition calling on the government to keep New Zealand Incinerator-free.

If you'd like to sign this petition, you can find it here: